Here is the reason behind the striking gesture made by Ethiopian Feyisa Lilesa on the final day of these Olympics — a man who doesn't know whether he'll return home.
A silver medal with a sensational protest at the Olympics, broadcast worldwide, at the Sambadrome in Rio. Finishing second in the men's marathon, he crosses his wrists mimicking handcuffs as a sign of protest against the government of his country, Ethiopia.
This is the striking gesture chosen by athlete Feyisa Lilesa, who, competing at Rio 2016 as part of the Ethiopian delegation, explains his protest: "The government is destroying the Oromo people like me. It is taking their land and their resources. The Ethiopian government is killing my people, my relatives are in prison, and if they speak about democratic rights they are killed."
Ethiopian athlete Feyisa Lilesa, who finished second in the men's marathon, made the handcuffs gesture as a sign of protest against the government of his country.
The sensational gesture took place in Rio at the end of the Olympic race, which was won by Kenya's Eliud Kipchoge. The protest was staged at the moment he crossed the marathon finish line, but the athlete then stepped onto the podium to receive his silver medal, repeating the gesture.
Then, with the medal around his neck, Lilesa gave his explanation: "The Ethiopian government is killing the Oromo people, it is taking their land and their resources. I am Oromo and I support their protest. The Ethiopian government is killing my people, my relatives are in prison, and if they speak about democratic rights they are killed. I raised my hands to support the Oromo protest." According to the athlete, in the past nine months one thousand people of the Oromo ethnic group have been killed over protests related to rights and democracy.
An accusation that could have serious consequences. Having stepped onto the podium in an Ethiopian kit and then made such a public denunciation, Lilesa feels his life is in danger and doesn't know whether he'll go home. "I will talk it over with my family and friends. If I return to Ethiopia they could kill me. If they don't kill me they will put me in prison. Otherwise, they will stop me at the airport. I haven't decided yet, but perhaps I will move to another country. The IOC prohibits political demonstrations, I know that, but there is nothing I can do — it was what I felt I had to do. There is a serious problem in my country and protesting in Ethiopia is very dangerous. So I chose the stage of Rio. This medal was won with a higher purpose."
Ethiopia has always been a country in which multiple different ethnic groups coexist. In the past, the balance between its social components was managed through tight control by the historically dominant ethnic group, the Amhara; today, that balance is managed by the Tigrayan minority of the north. In this context, the Oromo find themselves increasingly marginalised even within their own territories. Agricultural development plans, oriented predominantly towards coffee, have led to the displacement of thousands of Oromo from their homes. This gave rise to protests and extremely harsh responses from the security forces in recent months. The last and most serious episode came in January 2016, when Addis Ababa's security forces allegedly killed at least 140 people in a crackdown on anti-government demonstrations. The security forces reportedly targeted in particular Oromo farmers who were protesting against the relocation plans imposed by the government as part of its agricultural development projects.